The Policy and Government Relations (PGR) service area of the OAA had a quiet start to 2025 with government recessing until April 14. This allowed PGR staff to focus on building their internal knowledge, review and prioritize key issues, and build relationships with other stakeholders. As the spring ramped up, PGR staff continued its work advancing key legislative changes, including recommendation to fix Ontario’s broken Site Plan Approval process, and worked closely with other service areas, like the Office of the Registrar on advancements in regulatory policy and monitoring the governance landscape.
This article summarizes some of the work accomplished thus far this year. For further insights into the OAA’s Policy and Government Relations work and correspondence, explore the OAA’s GR Portal.
Queens Park Picks 2025
PGR staff invited Members of Provincial Parliament (MPP) to nominate a community-focused building in their riding in an effort to align this year’s Queen’s Park Picks with the 2025 Conference theme of Reshaping Communities. This year, a record-high 36 MPPs participated with 55 nominations. The top nine selection process, led by the OAA's Policy Advisory Coordination Team (PACT) will take place this summer, with research continuing shortly after. PGR staff look forward to hosting another successful evening reception at Queen’s Park on October 21 to unveil the Queen’s Park Picks. (You can see the 2024 winners here.)
This year, PACT Chair (and Immediate Past-President) Settimo Vilardi joined OAA staff in meeting with Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs) to discuss the data found in the OAA’s 2024 Delays in Site Plan Approval report by Altus. At the time of writing, there have been three successful meetings with MPPs and their staff. The stark data in the report has been well received and even quoted by Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade, Hon. Vic Fedeli ’s remarks in the House. Meetings continue to be scheduled with MPPs and their staff throughout the summer and into the fall, ahead of the evening reception at Queen’s Park. To read the press release of the Site Plan Approval report, click here.
Legislative Response
PGR staff continued to monitor the Legislative Assembly of Ontario following the February snap election. With a later start than usual on April 14, staff were busy reviewing legislation introduced in the brief six weeks of sitting.
Prior to the return of the Ontario Legislature, Nova Scotia introduced Bill 36, Free Trade and Labour Mobility within Canada Act with Ontario declaring its intention to introduce reciprocal legislation. As OAA staff were updated by its Nova Scotia counterpart, PGR staff wrote to the Hon. Doug Downey, Attorney General, to inform him of the Association’s awareness of the Nova Scotia legislation and readiness to collaborate with government once the reciprocal legislation was tabled. The letter to the Attorney General can be read here.
On April 16, the aforementioned Hon. Vic Fedeli introduced Bill 2, Protect Ontario Through Free Trade Within Canada Act, 2025. The legislation is intended to remove interprovincial trade barriers with provinces that have reciprocal legislation. PGR staff has worked closely with the Office of the Registrar to understand the impact of “deemed certification” to the existing mutual recognition and registration processes for architects in Ontario. To read the OAA’s submission on Bill 2 to the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs, click here.
In its third edition of “Protecting” legislation, government tabled Bill 17, Protect Ontario by Building Faster and Smarter Act, 2025. The Bill proposed changes to the Planning Act by changing complete application rules to limit what can be required as part of a complete application. A proposed regulation will limit the scope of permitted studies, and proposes to exclude sun/shadow, wind, urban design and lighting reports. In addition, the legislation proposed to update the Building Code Act to prevent municipalities from passing bylaws respecting the construction or demolition of buildings. This would appear to make green building standards obsolete and ensure that the same OBC standards apply province wide. To read the OAA’s statement, click here.
Government Consultations
As a member of the Engineers, Architects, and Building Officials (EABO) industry group, an open letter was written on behalf of EABO to the Hon. Rob Flack, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, congratulating his appointment in the new term. The letter reaffirmed EABO’s availability to serve as a resource to the Ministry to provide input and expertise on a variety of topics, such as Building Code changes, permitting times, and other regulatory matters related to the design and construction industry. To read the full letter, click here.
During the government’s preparation of Bill 2, Protect Ontario Through Free Trade Within Canada Act, 2025, the OAA was consulted by the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training, and Skills Development on the impacts of the legislation and accompanying regulations on the regulated professions. PGR staff provided details of the OAA’s registration process and continued compliance with the Fair Access to Regulated Professions and Compulsory Trades Act (FARPACTA).
To learn more about the Policy and Government Relations services area of the OAA, check out the OAA’s GR Portal.